Floor pad



Jllb' 18, 1967 C. Q ROCKABRAND ET AL Re. 26,239

FLOQR PAD Original Filed April 21, 1958 /4 f3 20 /l /6 10 20 f4 )A yA/*Lz 10 Rg, d? 26 J1() fie. 4

INVFNTORS Cun/o5 5 .EbcKAsRA/vo B/Yio WARD l/m61 Naam/1M Arma/wey United States Patent O Matter enclosed in heavy brackets appears in the original patent but forms no part of this reissue specification; matter printed in italics indicates the additions made by reissue.

This invention relates, in general, to floor constructions for buildings of different kinds, including dwellings, and it has to do particularly with resilient floor pads that are interposed between subfloors and superposed floors.

Our improved resilient floor pads are intended for attachment to the underside of sleepers that support the flooring, and the sleepers, in turn, are supported through the floor pads from a subfloor. It is obvious that superposed floors thus supported are capable of a yielding aci tion, known as give, and that such floors afford comfort t persons walking, running or standing thereon, as Well as roller skating and dancing and minimize fatigue.

The pads may be supplied to builders separate from the sleepers, although there are advantages arising from prefabrication of the sleepers and pads by the supplier, according to preferred spacing and arrangement of the pads with respect to the sleepers.

Among the objects of our invention are: to provide a floor pad of natural or synthetic rubber or other elastic material of appropriate resiliency designed for attachment, by suitable fasteners, to the under side of sleepers, the pad including means for protecting the fasteners against being loosened or dislodged by contact with objects during the handling and shipment of prefabricated assemblies of pads and sleepers; and to provide a floor pad characterized by inwardly enlarging grooves that open through the planar under surface of the body portion of the pad and arev defined along their open sides by relatively sharp undercut edges, the material of the body portion on opposite sides of each groove constituting ribs of relatively narrow cross section in a zone spaced a distance inwardly from the open sides of the grooves, this feature contributing to a desirable action when the pad is subjected to compressive forces n a substantially vertical direction or to shearing forces in a generally horizontal direction.

Another object is to provide a floor pad that readily lends itself to economical production, in different sizes, by the extrusion of strips of material of appropriate cross sectional size and shape and severing the strips into pieces of required width to produce pads of the desired size.

By reason of the shape of the grooves and ribs above described, the pad not only reacts to forces imposed thereon in a manner to insure proper resilient action or give to the floor, but a bearing surface is produced for contact with the subfloor which performs in the fashion of a well defined and efficient tire tread for minimizing creeping of the pad on the subfloor during expansion and contraction of the superposed floor, brought about by atmospheric and temperature changes.

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The objects above set forth, with others that will appear as this description proceeds, are attained in the ernbodiments of the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawing wherein- FIGURE l is a perspective View of one form of our improved floor pad, revealing the grooved underneath side thereof;

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of another form of the pad, showing the corrugated top side thereof;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional detail of a floor construction incorporating the pads, and

FIGURE 4 is a section on the line 4-4 of FIGURE 3.

The pad shown in FIGURE l, and designated generally by the reference numeral 10, consists of a flat body portion 11., having substantially parallel top and bottom surfaces. The body portion is rectangular, and extending from the opposite ends thereof are relatively thick attaching flanges 14. The top surfaces of the flanges 14 are flush with the corresponding surface of the pad, and lips 16 depend from the edges of the flanges 14 remote from the body portion, for a purpose presently to be explained. Grooves 18 open through the bottom surface of the body portion 11 and adjacent said surface their opposed sides are upwardly divergent so as to produce relatively sharp edges 20 along the opposite sides of thc grooves. In the present instance, the grooves 18 are substantially square in cross section and are disposed as though one diagonal axis of the square is vertical, and the other horizontal.

It follows from thc foregoing that ribs 22 extend along the opposite sides of each groove and, by reason of the shape of the grooves, the ribs are reduced in breadth in the plane of the widest parts of the grooves.

As illustrated in FIGURES 3 and 4, the pads 10 are secured. by fastening means or staples 26, to the underside of sleepers 28 that carry a floor 30. The boards of which the floor is formed are secured to the sleepers in the usual way. Obviously, the floor may be double, if desired, in accordance with conventional practice. The lloor construction just described is resiliently supported, through the pads 10, from a subfloor 32. The subfloor may be of any suitable construction and material, the one shown in the drawing being indicated as consisting of a cement slab.

In practice, sleepers of convenient lengthfour feet, for example-may be supplied to builders with the floor pads secured thereto by the fastening means or staples 26. The lips 16, that extend along the outer edges of the attaching flanges 14, effectively protect the fastening means or staples 26 from contact with objects during handling and shipment of the prefabricated assemblies of sleepers and pads, and which might cause the fastening means to be loosened or dislodged.

It is evident that the pads l0 resiliently support the superposed floor structure, but it will be understood that the composition of the pads is stifl and firm enough to prevent noticeable descent of the floor structure under its own weight. ln this connection it may be explained that the desired spacing apart of the pads is approximately twelve inches in both directions of the floor structure. To avoid relative vertical movement between adjoining aligned sleepers, the joints of one row of sleepers are offsct or staggered with respect to the joints of adjacent rows.

When weight or sudden impact is imposed upon the floor in a vertical direction, the ribs 22 of the body portions of the pads will yield in a vertical direction, and

when a lateral thrust is imparted to the oor a stress in a substantially horizontal direction will be transmitted to the pads and under these circumstances the ribs will be deformed laterally to a very slight degree. Due to the fact that the ribs are reduced in breadth a distance upwardly from the bottom surface of the pads, they will yield more readily to this latter action.

As hereinbefore pointed out, the grooved bottom surface of the pad functions in the manner of an ecient tire tread, the action being enhanced by the sharp edges 20, and as a result, shifting of the pad on the suboor during expansion and contraction of the superposed floor structure is minimized.

In the modified form of the pad illustrated in FIGURE 2, the grooves 18a are of dovetail shape in cross section. Hence, the sides of the grooves diverge upwardly, producing the sharp edges 20a, and they join the horizontal top walls of the groove at an acute angle. The intermediate ribs 22a are of minimum breadth in the plane of said top walls, which condition enhances the action of the pad especially when subjected to stresses in a lateral direction. The top surface of the pad is shown as made up of parallel transverse ribs, which tends to overcome, to a considerable extent, any tendency ofthe pad to shift with respect to the sleeper to which it is secured. Furthermore, a pad of the present design effects a saving in rubber over a pad of the design and proportions of the one first described. the V-shaped channels that set off the ribs of the top wall being within the maximum thickness of the earlier described pad; and since the grooves 2a are of greater cross sectional area than those of the first described form, less rubber is contained in the body portion 11a of the pad lila.

The pads are cut from extrusions of natural or synthetic rubber or other suitable elastic material having a cross section that corresponds to the shape of the pad when viewed from the side. Therefore, diil'erent size pads differ in width only and the width is determined by the loads and stresses to which the pads are expected to be subjected. Obviously, smaller pads are used in floors of dwellings than are employed in the floors of commercial or industrial buildings or gymnasiums. Accordingly, from the sarne extrusion, heavy duty and light duty pads may be produced simply by cutting them to appropriate width.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim is:

1. A floor pad composed of a rectangular integral piece of resilient material and comprising a at body portion having top and bottom surfaces lying in substantially parallel planes and being of reduced thickness at its ends to provide integral attaching flanges that are of uniform width throughout their length and are Hush on their upper sides with the top surface of the body portion, an integral lip extending along and depending from the edge of each flange remote from the body portion and being of a depth within the thickness of said portion, the body portion having n series of relatively deep hollow grooves parallel to its ends that are open at their ends and also through its bottom surface, and ribs on opposite sides of each groove, the sides of the grooves diverging upwardly from the bottom surfaces at a relatively wide angle thereby to produce comparatively sharp edges along the opposite sides of the grooves and reduce in lateral dimension the aforesaid ribs a distance upwardly from said bottom surface.

2. A door pad as set forth in claim 1 wherein the sides of said grooves reconverge upwardly above the point where said ribs are of minimum width whereby the grooves have a substantially square section with the diagonal of the square arranged vertically.

3. A door pad as set forth in claim 1 wherein the grooves have a generally dovetail shaped cross section.

4. In u floor construction including a subfloor and a superimposed floor, an intermediate floor pad composed of n rectangular integral piece of rcsilicnr material and comprising a flor body portion having top and bottom tit] surfaces lying in substdnliully parallel planes and being of reduced thickness al its ends to provide integral attaching flanges that are of uniform width throughout their length und are flush on their upper sides with the top surfoce of Ihc body portion, thc body portion having a series of rclativcly decp hollow grooves parallel 1o its cnds that arc open al their ends and also through irs bottom surface, and ribs on opposite sides of euch groove, the bollorn surface of said ribs constituting gripping surfaces defined by edges, the sides of the grooves divcrging upunrdly from the bottom surface at a relatively wide angle rhercby reducing in lateral dimension the aforesaid ribs o distance upwardly from said bottom surface, and fasteners extending through said alloc/ling flanges and connecting said floor pad lo the superimposed floor with said top surface in contact therewith, said gripping surface of cach rib being deformable to conform to any irregularities in said subfloor and frictionally grip said subfloor thereby resisting relative horizontal movement between cach gripping surface and said subfloor.

5, In a floor construction including a subfloor and a .superimposed floor, un intermediate floor pod composed of n rectangular integral piece of resilient material and comprising a flut body portion having top and bottom surfaces lying in substantially parallel planes and being of rcduccd thickness uit its ends to provide integral attaching flanges llmt are of uniform width throughout their lcngrh und ore flush on their uppcr sides with the rop surface of said body portion, the body portion having a series of relatively deep hollow grooves parallel lo its cnds that are open at their ends und also through its bottom surface, and ribs on opposite sides of cach groove, the sides of the grooves diverging upwardly from the botlom surface or a relatively wide angle thereby reducing in lateral dimension the aforesaid ribs a distance upwardly from said bottom lsurface, and means securing said floor pod to said superimposed floor with said rop .surface in abutting Contact therewith, the boitom surface of each rib constituting u deformable gripping sur/ucc dcfincd by edges which frictonally grip said subfloor.

6. In a floor construction comprising o subfloor and a superimposed floor, un intermediate floor pod comprising a rectangular unitary member of resilient material having subsruntially parallel top and bottom surfaces, said top surface being in abutting contact with said superimposed floor, und said bottom surface frclionally gripping said subfloor, said bottom surface having a plurality of parallel hollow grooves extending the full width of the pad and open at the ends thereof, :raid grooves being at least substantially one half the thickness of the pad in depth, said grooves by their side walls defining a plurality of parallel gripping ribs each having a gripping surface forming port of said bottom surface, said ribs having greater width than the grooves nt said gripping surface, said side walls of the grooves being laterally diverging upward from said gripping surface, said diverging walls reducing the lateral thickness of the ribs intermediate said top and bottom surfaces ro provide increased resiliency of said ribs under applied loods.

7. In a floor construction comprising a subfloor and a superimposed floor, an intermediate floor pad comprising a rectangular unitary member of resilient material having substantially parallel top and bottom surfaces, said top surface being in abutting contact with said superimposed floor, said bottom surface gripping frictionally said subfloor, said bottom gripping surface having a plurality of parallel hollow grooves extending the full width of the pad und open at the ends Ihcrcof, said grooves by their sido walls dcning a series of parallel gripping ribs comprising the bottom surface, said ribs having greater width than the grooves at said gripping surface, said side walls of thc grooves being laterally divcrging upward from said bottom gripping surface, said grooves being at least one half the thickness of the pad in depth, said diverging walls reducing laterally the thickness of the ribs intermediate patent.

References Cited The following references, cited by the Examiner, are of record in the patented file of this patent or the original UNITED STATES PATENTS Anderson 94-15 X Clark et al. 94-15 Weiss.

Bonner et al 94-15 Gammeter 94--1.5 X Harding 248-22 6 Peik 52-145 X Harmon 248-22 X Brickman 94-15 X Wait et al 52-403 X Nelson 52-403 FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain. Denmark.

12/1942 Great Britain.

Germany. Denmark.

OTHER REFERENCES The Engineer, page SC3 (Br. #678,731), Oct. 10, 1952.

IOHN E. MURTAGH, Primary Examiner. 

